Kataang Week 2014
by oreocheesecakes
Summary: A collection of oneshots written for Summer Kataang Week 2014. Ratings will range from K to T, and the genres will mostly be Angst, Romance, and/or Hurt/Comfort. Day 7: Safe. Rating: K , Genre: Angst, Hurt/Comfort. In hindsight, there were so many other ways he could have saved her, but as he had proven earlier, rationality tended to take a backseat in times of panic. Complete.
1. Secrets

**A/N: HAPPY KATAANG WEEK! *throws confetti in the air* Thank you so much for checking out my contribution :D**

**This is my very first time joining a ship week, so please tell me if I'm doing anything wrong. Still, I really hope I don't disappoint! :)**

**Now then, I'm going to kick things off with a little angst.**

**Day 1: Secrets  
Word Count: Roughly 3,000  
Rating: T  
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Angst**

**I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender.**

* * *

"What are you smiling about?" Katara asked as she and Aang walked into Republic City's sprawling legislative building.

Aang smirked. "Well, it's not every day that I get to bring my beautiful wife to work," he answered smoothly.

She rolled her eyes in an effort to hide her flushed expression. "And with good reason."

He nodded. "It _is _hard to get the acolytes to watch Bumi. They're terrified of him," he said, chuckling.

She couldn't help but laugh along with him. "Well, yes, there's that. But . . . I don't really speak up at these kinds of meetings, Aang. What if I say something wrong?" she fretted.

"You once helped a bunch of earthbenders find their courage," the Avatar reminded her. "You'll do fine."

"This is different. I'm bringing to attention something I wish never existed," she said, looking at the floor.

He smiled reassuringly. "That's why you're going to propose outlawing it. Ah, here we are," he said, leading her into the meeting hall.

Katara's eyes widened at the vastness of the place—she was sure that they could easily fit in Republic City's entire population in there, Appa included. Sunlight streamed in from the glass windows, painting the walls a beautiful gold, while glistening chandeliers hung from the lofty ceiling. Pride filled her as she marveled at how all those long months of planning had more than paid off.

"We also hold trials here," Aang informed her, seeing her curiously studying the rows of empty chairs that surrounded them on both sides. "But most of the time, we just hold council meetings over there."

He pointed to a U-shaped table at the end of the room, and Katara could see that there were a few people already seated at it.

"Avatar Aang, Lady Katara." The council, consisting of representatives from each nation, stood up and bowed in unison as they approached.

Katara reddened at the gesture, but Aang was relaxed, obviously used to it. Though the new metropolis was already fully established and filled with people from every nation, council meetings continually kept the Avatar busy, as many things—mainly political—were yet to be sorted out. "Please, take your seats," he said, motioning for them to sit back down.

"Good to have you here, sis," a familiar voice said. The waterbender looked up to see Sokka grinning at her.

"Sokka!" she exclaimed, rushing towards him.

"Hey, you're the star of this meeting. You sit over here." He pointed to the chair next to him, which was at the head of the table. "Aang will sit on your other side, right across me. Knock 'em dead, Katara," he said, winking at her.

Reminded of the task that lay ahead of her, Katara gave him a weak smile in return before making her way to her seat. Aang, ever the gentleman, pulled out the chair for her, giving her hand one last squeeze before taking his place on her right.

When everyone was settled, Sokka stood up. "Now that everyone is present, I hereby call this meeting to order!" he declared, banging the gavel in front of him. Katara was surprised to hear how official-sounding her lunatic brother sounded.

"Before we begin, I'd like to introduce to you Lady Katara of the Southern Water Tribe." Katara stood up, flustered but smiling as polite applause echoed around the room. "She has a proposal for a new law, and Avatar Aang and I decided that a council meeting would be the best venue for her to voice out what she has to say."

He gestured at her. "Lady Katara, please, take the floor," he said, bowing graciously before sitting down.

Suddenly nervous again, she glanced at Aang, who flashed her a smile and a discreet thumbs-up. She visibly relaxed at the encouragement, walking over to the mouth of the end of the table and facing the council with newfound confidence.

She cleared her throat. "Good morning, everyone. As Councilman Sokka said, my name is Katara, and I have come to petition the outlawing of a rare and monstrous form of waterbending that only a few people in this world know about—bloodbending."

The council started murmuring, exchanging confused looks. It was obviously the first time they had heard of it.

"Bloodbending operates on the principle of manipulating the water in a person's body," Katara explained. "Only possible under a full moon, this allows a waterbender to take control of a person and force him to do things against his will—much like a puppeteer."

The Northern Water Tribe representative, Yuri, raised his hand, and Katara nodded at him. "Lady Katara, how did you find out about this? Such a thing is unheard of even in the North."

She pursed her lips. "As I said, bloodbending is very rare. But the main reason you probably don't know about it is because to my knowledge, it was invented by a Southern waterbender."

"Lady Katara," Councilwoman Ming, the Earth Kingdom representative, spoke up. "Please correct me if I'm mistaken, but I thought you were the only surviving waterbender from the South Pole."

"It's true that I was the only Southern waterbender to be born after generations. However, during my travels with Avatar Aang, Councilman Sokka, and Chief Toph Beifong, we came across an old woman named Hama. It turned out that she was a waterbender from our tribe, and the only one who had escaped from prison."

Everyone at the table nodded.

"As you all know, the Fire Nation invaded my home decades ago and took away all the waterbenders from our tribe." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the Fire Nation council member—Zara, if she remembered right—look down in embarrassment. She felt a pang of remorse for bringing up the Fire Nation's previous crimes, but there was no other way to explain the situation. "Hama described the experience as torturous—they were locked in cells and kept away from any possible source of water," she continued. "Or at least, that's what the guards thought.

"There were also rats in her prison, and it wasn't long before she realized that they were just living packs of water. Every full moon, she practiced with them, and when she had perfected the skill, she bloodbent the guards, forcing them to release her."

"Where is she now?" Councilwoman Lia asked. She was an acolyte chosen to represent the Air Nomads.

"The last we saw of her was a few weeks before Sozin's Comet," she answered. "She was locked up by the people from a Fire Nation town near her house for using her bloodbending to trap them in a cave. She wanted revenge," she said sadly. Though she in no way approved of Hama's means, she couldn't deny understanding the bitterness the old waterbender felt.

Everyone looked horror-stricken at her story. "Imagine, having no control over your body. It must be horrible," Zara said, shaking her head.

"It's worse than horrible," Sokka said, speaking up for the first time. He glanced over at Aang. "Hama bloodbent me and Aang, and she almost made us kill each other." The Avatar nodded, and they both shuddered at the memory.

Lia gasped. "How were you able to escape her control?" she asked.

Katara stiffened in terror at the question. She caught Aang's eye, and he too, seemed tense about the direction the discussion was headed.

Sokka, however, plowed on, oblivious. "Luckily for us, Katara—" He stopped, catching himself. "Er, uh . . . luckily for us, Katara saved us. Yep, good old Katara," he said, patting his sister's shoulder in an attempt to cover up the note of nervousness in his voice.

Unfortunately, her brother's acting was transparent. "How exactly did Lady Katara save you and Avatar Aang?" Ming asked, frowning.

Zara's eyes grew wide. "Did she _bloodbend_ Hama?"

Katara took a panicked step back as everyone in the room turned to her. "Is it true, Lady Katara? Are you a bloodbender yourself?" Yuri probed.

Cornered, her first instinct was to deny it."I—" She opened her mouth to speak, but Hama's words came back to her.

_You're a bloodbender, _her raspy voice said, her evil cackle ringing in her ears.

"I—um—" she stuttered, trying to fight the tight feeling in her chest.

"Lady Katara—"

Aang stood up, banging a fist on the table. "Enough! Katara has bloodbent _once, _and that was to save us." She bit her lip guiltily. _Not just once_. "I wouldn't even be _alive _if it weren't for her," he said, sweeping the council in a steely gaze.

A resounding gasp echoed in the room. "So it's true! Lady Katara _is _a bloodbender!" She winced as Ming's words sent chills down her spine.

Aang clenched his teeth. "Hama _forced _her to learn bloodbending by threatening us. She has the capability, yes, but the very fact that she's petitioning—"

"Avatar Aang, with all due respect, she's a threat to the peace of Republic City," Lia pleaded." She could take control of—"

"There's nothing respectful in what you just said," Sokka spat out. "Katara would _never_—"

"She's a bloodbender, for spirit's sake! A monster!" Zara exclaimed, looking right at her.

Though her tone was accusatory, her brown eyes reflected fear—the exact same fear she saw in the Southern Raider's captain, the same look that had haunted her for years.

Katara felt tears pool in her eyes, and she blinked them back furiously, hating herself. She had no right to cry—Zara only spoke the truth. She _was _a monster.

"How _dare_ you say that about my sister!" Sokka exploded, standing up as well and paying no attention to the chair that toppled over in the process. "She's the damn head healer at the hospital, in case you've all forgotten!"

"Councilman Sokka—"

"You have _no _idea what she's gone through!" Aang roared. She could see from his livid expression that he was on the verge of losing it. "Katara is the bravest, most compassionate person I have ever known, and I will _not_ allow you to talk to her like that!"

Each word he uttered felt like getting stabbed. She closed her eyes. _If only they knew . . ._

Lia took a deep breath, trying to talk as gently as possible. "Avatar Aang, we understand that you may be biased towards your wife—"

"_Biased?!_" Sokka raged. _"_I'll have you all know that Katara cried for _hours _after she bloodbent Hama, and if any of you have the _nerve_ to say that she would use that power for her own personal—"

She couldn't take it anymore. She couldn't watch her husband and her brother defend her when she knew that she was a hypocrite and a coward. Suffocated by guilt, she ran out of the room, letting the tears run freely down her face.

"Katara!" Aang called after her, but she had already disappeared. He turned to glare at the council. "You should be ashamed of yourselves. I'm going after her, and I expect you to all be ready with an apology when we return."

"Oh, they will," Sokka said menacingly, crossing his arms. The representatives shrank back into their chairs as he eyed them sinisterly.

Aang nodded, then dashed out of the hall with the aid of his airbending, the sound of Sokka's fuming voice fading with the distance.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

After a few minutes of searching, he finally found her in a corner, hugging her knees to her chest.

"Katara! There you are." Relief was evident in his voice. He immediately knelt down beside her, putting an arm over her shoulder and holding her close.

"You and Sokka didn't have to say all that," she mumbled.

"Of course we did. I don't know what's gotten into the council." He shook his head.

"But they're right, Aang," she said, her voice shaky. "I'm a bloodbender." She turned to look up at him. Her ocean eyes were puffy from crying.

It hurt him to see her like this: so pained and miserable. He momentarily let go of his earlier rage, only wanting to make her feel better.

"That's a lie, Katara. We both know the truth, and Sokka knows it, too. He's giving the council the yelling of a lifetime right now," he said, smirking and shaking his head. "Honestly, I almost went into the Avatar State back there."

"No, Aang, you don't understand—"

"Don't understand what?" His gray eyes searched hers, looking for an explanation.

She drew in a shuddering breath. "I'm a hypocrite."

"What?" He was utterly confused. "Katara, what are you talking about?"

She seemed torn for a moment, as if deciding on something. "I—I've never told anyone this before. The only one who knows is Zuko, and that's because he was there at the time."

"What—"

She closed her eyes. "Hama wasn't the only person I bloodbent." she confessed. "I bloodbent someone else out of spite, Aang. An innocent man." Her voice broke at the end.

His eyes widened in shock. "When was this?"

She looked away. "When Zuko and I were looking for the person who killed my mother. We found the ship of the Southern Raiders, so we hijacked it. I b—bloodbent the captain, thinking he was the man . . ." She leaned into his chest, collapsing into sobs once more.

Aang's grip on her tightened, immediately understanding. "But you didn't bloodbend the real killer, did you?"

She shook her head. "We found him the morning after. If it were a full moon, I can't say I wouldn't have . . ." she trailed off despondently.

Aang didn't say anything for a while, holding her as she cried into his robe and letting everything she had told him sink in. He thought back to the flash of pain in her eyes back at the meeting, and realized that it wasn't because she had been hurt by the council's accusations. It was the pain of guilt—guilt from hiding something she was ashamed of, something she regretted.

It was the kind of pain, he realized, that he was all too familiar with.

"You know, Katara, you're not the only one with a secret," he admitted, keeping his eyes trained on the ground.

She sniffed, looking up at him. "Huh?"

"You know that Air Nomads believe that all life is sacred. I live out this principle by practicing vegetarianism and avoiding murder at all costs." Her eyebrows furrowed, not sure where he was going with all this. "But the truth is, I don't have as clean a reputation as most people would think."

"What do you mean?"

"Remember that buzzard wasp that took Momo back in the desert?" She nodded. "I—I killed it," he confessed. "It had already let go of Momo and was flying away, but I struck it down because I wanted revenge." He hung his head in shame.

"Aang . . ." she whispered, holding a hand to his cheek. "You were mad about Appa."

"Well, you were mad about your mother," he countered. "Rage is a dangerous thing, Katara. It makes you do things you normally wouldn't."

"Things you would regret for the rest of your life," she said, closing her eyes.

"Exactly," he said. "But . . . Guru Pathik once told me that if you want to be a positive influence on the world, you have to accept the reality of things and forgive yourself."

"Easier said than done."

He half-smiled at the scowl on her face. "Trust me, I know," There was a hint of sorrow in his stormy eyes, and Katara knew that it wasn't just because of the buzzard wasp. Not being there for his people, losing control while in the Avatar State—it was in that moment that she realized he was stronger than she had ever imagined.

She sighed. "You're right. It's just . . . no matter how you put it, Hama and I both bloodbent innocent people because we wanted vengeance. I've always found what she did sickening, and it turns out that I'm no better than her. "

"That's not true," Aang disagreed. "You're sorry for what you did, right?"

"More than anything."

He kissed her forehead. "Then that makes all the difference," he assured her. "What you did was wrong, but unlike Hama, you regret it, Katara. It's only right that you feel remorseful, but you can't let the past haunt you forever."

Katara averted her eyes, not ready to accept his wisdom but unable to deny it either.

"We're all mere humans," he continued. "Try as we might, we'll always be flawed. It's just a matter of realizing our mistakes and doing our best to fix them."

A small smile slowly spread onto her face as his words washed over her, filling her with a newfound sense of peace and lightness. "You're right. Thanks, Aang," she said gratefully. "For making me feel better and for not seeing me as a monster."

He laughed lightly. "I don't think anything can change the way I see you. Or feel about you, for that matter."

She felt a blush creep up on her cheeks and turned away from the affectionate look he was giving her. "Aang!"

"What? You know it's true."

She shook her head. "You're hopeless."

"Always have been," he said good-humoredly. "Now, what do you say we head back now?" He airbent himself up. "You've got a law proposal to finish."

She hesitated. "What am I going to tell the council now? I mean, they know I'vebloodbent, and I can't expect them to be as understanding as you. They're terrified of me already."

He paused for a while, thoughtful. "I suppose you should just come clean. I can't promise it'll fully erase any doubts they have about you, but I'll back you up with my Avatar wisdom if things get out of hand again." He grinned impishly. "I don't think you have to worry about anything, though. Sokka was really letting them have it when I left, and I'd be surprised if they aren't begging for forgiveness on their knees when we return."

"I see," she said, laughing as he helped her up. "We'd better get going, then. Maybe they'd go easier on me if I save them from Sokka's wrath."

"It's worth a shot," he agreed, automatically taking her hand. The simple touch spoke volumes—that she wasn't alone in this, that he believed in her, that the secrets they had shared were safe.

That as flawed as they both were, he stubbornly still chose to love her.

"Thanks again, Aang," she said softly, tiptoeing up to kiss him on the cheek. She smirked at how this time, it was his turn to blush.

"Anytime," he said as they walked back to the meeting hall together, hand in hand.

* * *

**. . . That turned out way longer than expected. **

**For some reason, Yakone's line "It was outlawed by that coward Katara." has always fascinated me, so I'm glad I finally got to write a fic about it.**

**Constructive criticism/comments would be great, but I'm honestly just thankful you read my story :)**

**See you all tomorrow! :D**


	2. Comfort

**A/N: More angst coming up!**

**Day 2: Comfort  
****Word Count: 1, 200+  
Rating: T  
****Genre: Tragedy, Hurt/Comfort, Angst**

**I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender.**

* * *

It was late afternoon. The fading sunlight streamed through an open window, and the sound of waves crashing onto the island's shore filled the room. Everything around them was so deceitfully peaceful.

The healer quietly made her way out of the door, wanting to leave the couple alone.

"There's really nothing you can do?" She turned and saw him staggering out the room after her. Her gaze was immediately locked by a pair of stormy gray eyes.

She stood in silence. She had dealt with such cases so many times before, but it hadn't made it any easier. It ached her to see a young couple so tormented by the injustice of life.

"Nothing at all?" the young man repeated.

She knew that it wasn't as if he didn't know the answer. But desperation made people blindly cling on to the slightest ray of hope they could find.

She shook her head sadly. "I'm sorry."

She watched as his posture sagged, despair taking over him completely. It was one of her greatest regrets as a healer: as skilled she was in easing physical pain, she couldn't help when it came to the emotional—and that, she had learned, was the worst kind of pain there was.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Aang clutched the doorframe for support. Although her response was unsurprising, the healer's words were like a blow to the chest. He closed his eyes. No. _No. _

He had seen more than his fair share of death and destruction in the world, and he had spent the past years trying to prevent others from experiencing the same. What had he done to deserve such a thing? What had _she _done?

He felt it, the urge to let loose of the emotional turmoil within him and destroy everything he touched. But he didn't dare give in; it wasn't right for his devastation to be the cause of someone else's.

"I'll leave you with Master Katara." The healer's voice sounded distant. He heard her walk away, her footsteps echoing in the empty hallway.

Katara. He had to pull himself together for her. She needed him.

He took a deep breath. He needed to be strong for her. For them.

He slowly walked back into the room. Katara was sitting on the bed, propped up with the help of a pillow. Her eyes were closed, and she was still as a statue.

"Katara?" he asked tentatively. When she didn't answer, he sat down on the edge of the bed, careful not to disturb her in any way. The silence that filled the room was thick, but Aang wasn't going to force her to talk if she wasn't ready.

After a few minutes, she finally spoke. "Why, Aang?" she finally croaked out. "Why, of all people . . ."

Aang took her hand, tears pooling at the corners of his eyes as well. "I'm thinking the same thing, Katara."

"She didn't deserve it," she whispered.

He nodded. "I know. Nobody does."

Katara drew in a shuddering breath. "I—I—"

"Shh." Aang adjusted his position so that he could wrap her securely with one arm.

"I—I'm s—sorry," she said in between sobs.

The tears leaked out of his eyes as he smoothed back her hair. "It's not your fault, Katara," he reassured her, pulling her closer.

She clung to him, dampening his robes with her misery. "I—I could have been more careful . . ."

"You couldn't have," he said softly. He didn't blame Katara at all for continuing to work at the hospital even when she was pregnant. No doubt that she had gotten the virus from there, but she never could turn her back on people who needed her. "No one but you could heal that patient, sweetie. I'm proud of you for saving his life."

"But what about Kya's life?" She pulled back to look at him. The pain in her eyes was palpable as she said the name that was shared by her mother and daughter, both taken away too early. "What about her?"

Getting struck by lightning was almost better than seeing his wife like this. He closed his eyes. "Katara—"

"I'm a failure. I know how badly you want an airbender." Her words knocked the breath out of him. He _did _want that. So badly that it hurt. "And I want more than anything for you not to be alone anymore. If—"

"Katara," he cut her off firmly, looking straight at her. "Any child of ours would be perfect, airbender or not. Don't beat yourself up over trying to repopulate the Air Nomads."

"But—"

"My people won't die out, Katara. The Fire Nation tried, and even they didn't succeed."

"Aang . . ." They just stayed like that for the next few minutes, just holding onto each other.

"Aang?" He looked up. Her eyes were closed. The Avatar could tell that she was exhausted.

"Yes, sweetie?"

"How are we going to get through this?" She sounded hopeless, defeated.

To be honest, he didn't know. He was still so consumed in the present.

"We just will, Katara," he assured her, even though he didn't fully believe in the words himself.

He could see from her expression that he hadn't fooled her. "I could use a philosophical saying right now," she sighed.

The Avatar chuckled darkly. "I know a few, but I don't think we'll find any one of them convincing at the moment."

Katara's mouth twitched, showing the slightest hint of a smile. "You're right."

Silence ensued once more, but it wasn't nearly as tense as earlier. It was sadder, more thoughtful.

"Katara?" She looked up at him. "About what you said earlier, about me being alone . . ."

"I've seen the way you look at the air ball field at the Southern Air Temple, Aang," she said regretfully. "I know you're lonely—"

"That's not true, Katara." He said, cutting her off once more. He lifted her chin, guiding her eyes to his. "I'm not alone. I have you."

Their faces were only inches away, and their need for each other was great. They poured out all their grief into a kiss, holding onto one another as if they might fall apart if they didn't. In that moment, with their tears mixing together, they knew that they were each other's only refuge from the crushing pain that threatened to shatter them both.

"We can get through this together, Katara." Aang said after they had pulled away. He reached out to wipe away the tears from her face. "We can always try again."

Katara nodded. "I'm still naming her Kya, though," she murmured. "It's your call if it's a boy."

Aang blinked. "I actually hadn't thought about that. I'll get back to you," he promised.

The corner of her mouth pulled up in a smile at his light humor. She gazed into his thundercloud eyes for a moment, seeing only her own love for him reflected in them.

A newfound sense of comfort spread throughout her. They _could _get through this.

With this in mind, she snuggled up against him, resting her head on his strong chest. "I love you," Katara said. Her eyes slid shut once more, but the sorrow, albeit still evident on her face, had been somewhat eased.

He instinctively encircled her in a protective embrace, planting a kiss on her forehead. "I love you, too."

* * *

**So yeah, I'm not really sure how to write about characters kissing, so I apologize for any awkwardness, weirdness, etc.**

**Anyway, hope you guys liked it, and see you all tomorrow!**


	3. Rainy Days

**A/N: Happy Day 3, everyone! Here's a fluffy oneshot for you guys to recover from the depressing one yesterday :)**

**Rating: K+**

**Word Count: 1,400+**

**Genre: Romance, Lighthearted fluff.**

**I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.**

* * *

Katara stood by the window. Everything outside was tinted gray, and she watched as endless drops of water pelted the ground, effectively blurring her view.

Most people would look outside and remark how the day had been ruined. Katara, however, found it absolutely beautiful.

She made her way to the door, opening it and taking a step outside onto the covered porch. The cool air greeted her, and she inhaled the relaxing smell of wet earth. She then walked over to the edge and held out a hand to the rain, allowing herself the familiar feel of water sliding across her hand.

What she really loved most about rainy days, however, were the clouds. She looked up; they were a breathtaking mixture of silver and white with subtle hints of darkness on the edges-so much like his eyes.

She looked over at Republic City, made nothing more than a silhouette by the rain. Aang was off to another council meeting that day, and though she had always known that the Avatar belonged to the world, it didn't make her miss him any less.

She sat down on the topmost step. She knew Aang wouldn't like her moping around without him, so she tried to distract herself by watching something she had always found fascinating—how the rain rippled the water on the little pond they had near the house. For a while, she just stayed there, mesmerised by the intricate pattern of circles the drops created on the usually still pond and listening to the familiar sound of rain drumming on wood.

The corner of her mouth pulled up. Rain hadn't always been familiar.

_FLASHBACK_

_It had only been a few days since they had left the South Pole. They were setting up camp when suddenly, Katara felt a drop of something cold and wet hit the back of her neck._

_"__Who's there?" she said, whipping around._

_"__Um, me?" Aang answered, obviously confused. He was carrying a folded tent in his arms._

_The waterbender blinked. "Oh, sorry, Aang. I just felt something weird. Like . . . water hitting the back of my—" She was cut off by another cold drop, this time landing right on her nose. She looked up; above them was a carpet of gray, and water—liquid water, not snow—started falling down in heavy drops all around them._

_"__It's rain," came Aang's voice. Puzzlement was evident in his tone._

_"__Rain," she repeated. "It's beautiful."_

_"__You've never seen rain before?" She tore her eyes away from the sky to look at him. He was staring at her incredulously._

_"__No," she admitted. "Sokka and I have never left the South Pole before. All I've ever seen is snow, and when it gets really bad, blizzards." She shook her head. "I can't believe how much we've been missing out on."_

_"__Oh, well—" Aang fumbled for the right words. He had never met anyone who had never seen rain before. "I always liked snow better. Seeing everything in white is so much nicer than everything being tinged with gray."_

_Katara laughed. "Maybe you'd think differently if your entire world used to be white." _

_Aang grinned at her, his teeth flashing in the rain. "Maybe. But I've always found gray kind of dreary," he said. "Air Nomads would pick flying under a blue sky over a gray one anytime,"_

_He was looking right at her, bright with pride at his people's customs. She had to smile; Aang was the most cheerful person she'd ever known, and his eyes, the same shade as the clouds above them, were always sparking with humor and mischief. Over the past weeks, she had come to know gray as sincere and friendly, lighthearted and optimistic; a silent reminder of her closest friend._

_Quite the opposite of dreary, actually ._

_ "__I don't think gray's dreary," she said. "Your eyes are gray, and I think they're nice . . ."The words slipped out of her mouth before she could stop them. She blushed, her eyes widening in embarrassment. What had she just said?_

_Aang turned red as well. "Oh, um, thanks." He rubbed the back of his neck shyly. "I think your eyes are pretty nice, too. A blue sky." He mumbled the last part, but Katara heard it loud and clear._

_The waterbender felt as if her face were on fire. "Thanks."_

_She averted her gaze, trying to distract herself from the awkwardness of the moment. Her chest felt tight; she wasn't sure what to make of the exchange of compliments that had just happened between them._

_Aang was the first one to break the silence. "I guess I should go get the tents set up," he said, clearing his throat. "Sokka's going to kill me if he gets back and sees them still flat on the ground." He started to walk away._

_Katara couldn't let it end like that. He was the reason she had seen her first-ever rain, and it wasn't right for him not to know how much she appreciated it. "Wait." He stopped walking, looking back at her curiously. "I didn't get to thank you," Katara said._

_"__Thank me? For what?" He was utterly perplexed._

_She smiled, momentarily forgetting about the earlier tension. "I never would have seen rain if it weren't for you. So thank you, Aang."_

_He grinned, and she saw the familiar glint in his eyes return. "Well, I never would have gotten out of that iceberg if it weren't for you. But . . . you're welcome, Katara," he said warmly. _

_Right before he looked away, she saw that his argentine eyes were shining with happiness. It made her heart flutter a bit._

_Gray, she decided, wasn't dreary at all._

Katara sighed at the memory. How young they were, how naive she was back then . . .

Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar roar. Katara looked up; sure enough, she could just make out Appa flying towards the island.

She stood up. Paying no attention to the rain, she walked over just as the sky bison had landed.

"Hey, Katara," Aang greeted her as he skilfully airbent himself off Appa. He locked her gaze with his warm eyes, same as they were when he was twelve.

She smiled. "You're back early."

He shrugged. "The meeting went quicker than expected." He paused for a moment. "What are you doing outside?"

"Just remembering things. Watching the rain." Aang raised his eyebrows, but said nothing. "I missed you."

His expression softened at her words, and she closed the distance between them with a few steps, tiptoeing up to kiss him. She felt cool fingertips brush her cheek as he returned it eagerly, surprised but pleased.

"What's this about?" he asked with a smile after they had pulled away.

"I love you. Can't I welcome my husband back home?" she asked playfully.

He chuckled. "I didn't say I was complaining. But we _are_ getting drenched." He remarked, gesturing at their current dripping state.

"A simple matter, Avatar," she said, holding up a hand and easily creating a shield of water against the rain.

He shook his head in mock shame. "I'm an insult to you, Sifu Katara."

"No. You're just a goof," she said affectionately.

"I can't help it when I'm around you," he admitted bashfully.

She let out a short laugh. Thundercloud eyes looked back in confusion. "What is it?"

She laced her free hand's fingers through his strong ones. "Nothing." Together, they walked Appa back to his stable, exchanging stories about how they spent the day and just enjoying the feeling of being together.

"Work gets a little tough these days." Aang said, sighing. They had swapped waterbending duties; he was now holding up their makeshift umbrella. "But what keeps me going is that at the end of the day, I get to come back to you." He smiled at her, and though they had been married for almost a year already, she never really got over the butterflies whenever he looked at her in that special way.

"Aang!" she exclaimed, blushing. Unthinkingly, she smacked him, making him lose his control of the water.

"Look what you've done," he complained teasingly. "Now we're going to have to huddle so we won't get cold." He freed his hand and wrapped it around her waist, pulling her closer.

Fully aware that bending away the rain was no problem at all, she smiled, resting her head on his shoulder and enjoying the warmth radiating from him. She really did love rainy days.

* * *

**Though it did my heart good to write this, please note that fluff (especially fluff for the sake of nothing but fluff) is not my specialty, so I apologize for any awkwardness or failness, etc.**

**See you all tomorrow! :D**


	4. Storm

**A/N: Happy Day 4, everyone! Since yesterday's was full of fluff, are you guys up for some more Kataangst?**

**Rating: T  
Word Count: 1,400+  
Genre: Romance, Angst, Hurt/Comfort**

**I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.**

* * *

"Wow, it's pouring outside," Aang remarked, resting a hand on the wall as he glanced out of their bedroom window. As if to reinforce his statement, a flash of lightning lit up the sky, followed by a deafening clap of thunder. "And to think there wasn't a cloud in the sky earlier."

"Well, the old lady I bought fruits from this morning _did _warn me about a coming storm." Katara said, coming in from the bathroom. Aang turned at the sound of her voice, grinning as his wife walked over to him in a blue nightgown, her undone black-brown hair falling down in curls from being tied up all day. Effortlessly beautiful, as always.

"Did she say something about her joints telling her that?" he asked her, slipping into a smirk.

Katara giggled. "As a matter of fact, she did."

The Avatar nodded, and she could see the sparkle of humor in his gray eyes. "Ah, the luck of old people and their joints. Too bad weather prediction doesn't seem to be part of this Avatar deal." He turned back to look out of the window. "Maybe things would have been different if it were."

Katara looked up at the sudden change of tone in his voice, feeling a pang as she noted the sad, pensive look on her husband's face. There was no doubt that he was thinking of the night he had ran away, the last time he had seen the Southern Air Temple so full of life . . .

She knew he still felt guilty about it, and that he, no matter how little, blamed himself for his people's genocide. No matter what everyone else said, grief was a permanent thing, a scar—it dulled with time, but never really went away.

"You still think about it, don't you?" she said quietly.

He nodded. "It's kind of hard to forget."

They stood in silence for a while, just watching the torrent of rain fall down mercilessly from the sky.

"You know," she started, tearing her eyes away from the view and sitting down on the windowsill. "Sometimes I wonder . . ."

Aang turned to look at her. "About what?"

"If maybe things would have been better for you if there weren't any storm. If you hadn't run away," she said softly, averting her eyes. "I hate seeing you like this, so haunted by guilt and regret and knowing that there's nothing I can—"

"Katara," he said, gently cutting her off and sitting down as well. "You're going about this the wrong way."

"Aang—"

"I feel guilty, that's for sure. And ashamed. Running away was a cowardly thing to do." He took a deep breath. "But as to whether or not I regret it . . . I can't say I do."

Her dark brows furrowed in confusion. "I don't understand."

The Avatar's mouth curved up wistfully. "I do miss the Air Nomads. And spirits know I miss not being the only airbender in the world. But you were the one who told me, Katara—it was meant to be."

His words struck her, and all of a sudden, they were back in the cave, a glowing fire in between them as they took shelter from the storm.

"It was my destiny to defeat Ozai and restore balance to the world," he continued. "And even if I stayed, I don't think it would've been enough to save my people." Katara shuddered at the implications of what he said.

"But it's not just that. I'm not proud of running away, but because of it, I got to help so many people and meet so many friends —and I got to meet you." He smiled at her softly. "That's something I wouldn't trade for anything."

Katara felt heat rush to her cheeks. It was these casual declarations of his feelings for her that made her wonder how she had ever deserved him. "I'm far from an entire nation, Aang," she said, looking down at the pale blue arrows on the hands that tenderly held hers—tattoos that nobody else in the entire world had.

To her surprise, however, he simply laughed. "What's so funny?" she asked.

"You." His face, so serious a few moments ago, was bright with amusement as he affectionately brought her hands to his lips.

"What did I do?"

He shook his head. "I never really told you about my time with Guru Pathik, did I?"

She smiled wryly. "It was kind of hard to squeeze it in between getting ourselves out of Ba Sing Se alive and sneaking into the Fire Nation."

"Good point." He chuckled. "But anyway, when I visited the guru, he told me that to master the Avatar State, I had to unlock these chakras. One of them—the love chakra—is blocked by grief, so Guru Pathik instructed me to lay out all my grief in front of me. Of course, I thought of the Air Nomads."

"How did you let go of your grief?" she asked. Even after all these years, the fiery rage she felt for her mother's unjust death was always just beneath the surface.

The corner of his mouth pulled up as he remembered. "The guru told me that love is a form of energy. My people may be gone, but their love for me isn't—it was reborn into new love."

He looked into her eyes, reaching over to catch the tears that she didn't know had already fallen. "You _are _an entire nation, Katara."

He was so incredibly close to her as he said this, making her heart pound. Katara barely had a second to think before he moved in to touch his lips to hers.

"I love you," he said, their foreheads against each other. She looked back at the adoring silver eyes that were almost as familiar as her own. Lightning illuminated the room, followed shortly by crashing thunder, but neither of them paid any attention to it. "You're what eases the grief, Katara. You've given me so much—in fact, I might not even be the only airbender anymore." He reached out to rest his hand on the growing bump just below her abdomen.

Katara smiled widely, placing her hand on top of his. "I'd say there's a good chance. He's been kicking around so—" Something that felt like a sharp poke from the inside of her stomach knocked the breath out of her.

"Did you feel that? Did you _feel_ that?! She just high-fived me!" he exclaimed, beaming with pride. Katara felt another poke, a lighter one—almost like a flutter.

She watched as her husband's face lit up with wonder. "She knows my voice." His every word rang with awe.

"Of course," she said. "But what makes you think we're having a girl?"

He shrugged. "I can't imagine it any other way. What makes you think it's a boy?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "For starters, _I'm _the one carrying _him_. And I'm a healer, remember? I can sense energies, and I think it's a boy's energy inside me."

Aang laughed lightly. "Well, there's not much point in arguing, anyway. We'll find out soon enough."

"True," she breathed, leaning into him and feeling his arm instinctively wrap around her. She closed her eyes, and was immediately consumed by thoughts of a lively little boy with tufts of dark hair and familiar gray eyes, innocently bending little puffs of air while his father glowed with happiness and pride. A yawn escaped her lips a few seconds later, and only then did she realize how taxing being awake was.

"We should get to bed," Aang said after some time, gently nudging her. She didn't respond, however, and Aang could tell from her even breaths on his skin that she was already fast asleep.

Chuckling, he scooped her up into his arms with one deft motion and carried her across the room, laying her down gently on their bed. He watched her for a while after that, enjoying the peaceful look on her usually worried face. Curiously, there was also a small smile on her lips—and what that was about, he had no idea.

He glanced back over at the window as he climbed into bed. The rain was now insistently pattering on the glass, which meant that the wind had gotten stronger. Thunder shook their little bedroom once more, and beside him, Katara shifted, moving closer to him. He smoothed her hair back with a smile—if a storm was what brought him to her, than he couldn't see how it could be anything but good.

With that in mind, he settled into the sheets, and despite the howling wind, quickly drifted into a sound sleep.

* * *

**I guess in my stories, the best medicine for angst is fluff ^_^ For some reason, I just love the picture of them kissing with a storm in the background, with the lightning making them nothing more but silhouettes . . . now, if only I knew how to draw :( Oh well, I've laid down my aspirations of drawing to rest a long time ago anyway :)**

**How did you like my take on this prompt? :)**


	5. Midnight

**A/N: Happy Day 5, everyone! :D Let's have a bit of young Kataang for a change—this one is set in between the finale of Book 1 and The Cave of Two Lovers.**

**Rating: K+  
Word Count: Roughly 1,800  
Genre: Romance**

**Okay, I find the backstory of this fic quite amusing. This was actually written for ****_last year's _****Kataang Week, but I was too busy to finish it, much less publish it. Its initial prompt was Dance, but after [lots of] editing it's now adapted to fit Midnight. I hope you enjoy this "reincarnated" fanfic! :D**

**I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.**

* * *

Aang was jolted awake by a splash of water.

He sat up in surprise, instinctively reaching for his staff. He pointed it at the darkness threateningly, surveying what he could of the campsite under the full moon's light.

"Ugh, I'm getting rusty," a voice said. He whipped around, but there was nothing behind him besides Appa's white fur.

He stood up, tiptoeing his way around the bison. He took a deep breath, then slowly leaned over to take a peek behind his animal guide's sleeping body.

Katara was standing in the middle of the stream, wringing her hands in frustration. Her undone ebony hair cascaded down her back and she was dressed only in her undergarments—as she usually was whenever they had bending practice. Of course, he had seen her like this countless times before, but the Katara standing in front of him at that moment seemed to be a totally different person.

She literally _glowed_—as if she were bathing in moonlight, not water. She radiated strength, and her ocean-blue eyes were sparking with energy.

The sight was enough to strike him speechless. She was _beautiful._

"Let me try that again," she said to herself, unaware of his presence.

She gracefully drew two whips of water from the stream, and Aang watched in awe as she began to bend them. He recognized the basic moves that Katara had been teaching him for the past few weeks, but at the same time, he didn't.

He had never seen water manipulated like this before—Katara moved seamlessly through each stance, but there was a different kind of elegance in the way she did it. Aang was transfixed with how the water seemed to follow her every move; she spun them around like ribbons. Rather than a form of combat, she made waterbending seem nothing more than an enchanting dance.

She finished with a graceful flourish, the whips smoothly returning to the stream.

"Wow." The word was out of his mouth before he could stop it.

Katara gasped, instantly poised for battle. She was seconds away from attacking him when recognition flashed through her eyes. She blinked, dropping the water. "Aang? What are you doing up?"

"I—uh—" He fumbled for the right words, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "See, I just kinda happened to wake up—"

Her eyes widened. "You got drenched by my waterbending, didn't you?" she said, cringing in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, let me help you."

"It's fine. I've got it." He took a few steps away from Appa, putting himself in plain sight as he bent himself dry with a blast of air.

She sighed. "I've been getting a bit rusty. It's been a while since we last camped near some decent water." She looked up at him, suddenly realizing something. "Sokka. Is he up, too?"

Aang glanced back. "Nope. Still asleep. We're the only ones up."

Katara smiled. "Good."

After a moment's silence, Aang said, "Well, you know why I'm awake. What about you?"

She regarded him thoughtfully. Heat rushed into his cheeks; her blue eyes were even more striking at night. "Waterbenders are at their strongest on full moon nights." She looked up at the sky. "I'm not sleepy at all. I feel like I'm pulsing with raw energy—which actually isn't good if you can't control it," she said, flustered again. "Um, that would explain why you got wet earlier."

The corner of his mouth twitched. "It's fine."

Katara gave him a small smile in return. "But anyway, wielding so much power is exhilarating, and well . . . I just _had _to waterbend tonight. I felt like I would go crazy if I didn't." She paused. "Hey, since you're up anyway, what do you say we have some midnight waterbending practice? Waterbending under a full moon isn't something we get to do often."

"Sure!" he said, almost too eagerly. "But uh, isn't it a bit chilly?"

Katara's laugh rang in the darkness, and Aang thought the sound was akin to music. "I guess it is. But you won't notice it," she assured him. "You _are _a waterbender, so the moon should have the same effect on you as it does on me. Well, maybe a bit weaker, since you're not a master yet," she added.

"Okay." He smoothly slid out of his shirt and shoes, keeping only his pants on. This thought made him blush, but he mentally chided himself for his immaturity. They were having waterbending practice, only at night. So what if Katara looked like some kind of divine river spirit?

"What are you waiting for?" she called out playfully. "Get in the water, slowpoke!"

Her tone washed away all his anxiety. "Coming!" he responded cheerfully, jogging towards the stream. An electrifying surge ran through him as soon as he stepped into the water—Katara was right. He felt the invigorating light of the full moon on his skin, the adrenaline pumping through his veins. And no, he didn't feel cold at all.

"About time, pupil Aang," Katara said after he had waded his way towards her. Her arms were crossed, but there was a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"What are we learning today, Sifu Katara?" he asked. "I mean, tonight."

She grinned. "Actually, we're not really going to have lessons." She noted the surprised look on her student's face. "We can't try any really fancy moves without waking up Sokka, so I decided we have some sort of exercise instead."

"Exercise?" Aang repeated, confused.

"Yep. We're going to be working on reflexes and close combat moves. Waterbending is all about fluidity and shifting energy, and I just want you to feel the moon's power flowing through you and be able to let it out," she explained.

Aang nodded, an impish grin coming to his face. "Sounds like fun."

She smiled at his enthusiasm. "We're going to start with the formalities, though." She brought her fist to her palm, and looked pointedly at Aang.

"Right." He did the same, and they both bowed. Then they each held up an arm, touched their wrists, and circled each other, as was usual for waterbending duels.

Katara knew Aang would never strike first, so she sent a high kick at the airbender. A sizable arc of water followed her motion, which Aang neatly evaded.

"That's all there is to it," she said.

Aang nodded, executing a series of rapid waterwhips. Katara evaded each one agilely, her speedy movements a blur in the dark. They went on like that for some time, one attacking and one dodging, and gradually, something seemed to change.

They were soon moving easily, unconsciously; they were doing everything on impulse. Their eyes were trained on each other's, their movements perfectly synchronized. Completely lost in the exercise, their simple moves soon turned into acrobatic backflips, and it wasn't long before Aang started to airbend as well. It was quite a sight, air and water moving in harmony to some unknown rhythm, _dancing._

Like all things, however, it came to an end; somewhat abrupt yet at the same time just right. They were dripping wet from the splashes they had created, but they could clearly see the sparkle in each other's eyes, their exhilarated smiles. For a few minutes, everything seemed to have fallen in place, everything seemed right.

Both of them were aware of that fact as they tried to catch their breaths. Neither dared move a muscle; like a dream, the slightest movement would signal the end of the whole thing.

Aang could have stayed like that forever, but something started nagging at Katara. The smile dropped from her face as she realized exactly how _close _they were.

"Well . . . that was some exercise," she said, stepping back a little and bowing.

"You can say that again," Aang agreed, doing the same.

The rose up at the same time, their eyes locking onto one another once more. Something had changed during the dance, and they both knew it.

"I think that's enough for tonight," Katara said, looking away and distractedly bending the water out of her hair. "We should go to sleep. It's a miracle we didn't wake up Sokka tonight, but he's going to get suspicious if we oversleep tomorrow morning."

"You're right," Aang said, following Katara, who was already walking back towards the shore. "Um, Katara?" She turned back, looking at him curiously. "Thanks for tonight. You were right—there's nothing like waterbending under a full moon." The moonlight caught in his gray eyes, making them shine.

She let out a short, breathy laugh. "I'm glad you liked it. But uh, we'd better not mention this to Sokka. You know him, he—"

"Of course I won't. Avatar's promise," he said, holding up a hand as if taking an oath.

Even as they smiled at each other, they both knew that everything between them wasn't as lighthearted as it had been earlier that night. Something had shifted, and while this knowledge charged Aang with hope, Katara was terrified of it.

She couldn't make sense of the sureness she felt just a few minutes ago, or why everything had seemed so right. She shook her head; that moment they shared, that little spark underneath the full moon, was something to be tucked away in the deepest recesses of her heart until she could sort everything out.

She glanced over at Aang, who was easily bending himself dry with a few deft movements; a piece of cake for a master airbender, and much more for the Avatar. Suddenly, she remembered the fortune she received back in Makapu Village. _Could_ _he really be who Aunt Wu was talking about? _she thought. _Would that explain what had just happened?_

She shook her head, trying to clear her mind. Those questions were to be pondered on some other time.

"Katara?" His voice broke through her thoughts. "Aren't you going to get out of the water?" He was looking at her, puzzled.

"Oh, right," she said. He held out a hand for her, but she dutifully ignored it, stepping out of the stream by herself. She kept her eyes trained on the ground as she walked back to where she had left her clothes, willing herself not to look at the hurt expression on his face.

She couldn't risk Aang. She couldn't risk having their friendship tainted with confusion and tension.

She closed her eyes. The safest way for now, she decided, was to just pretend that nothing had happened at all.

* * *

**It's kind of my headcanon that Aang and Katara didn't pull the Kataango out of nowhere. So yeah, this is it.**


	6. Nightmare

**A/N: Day 6! Sorry this is late.**

**Rating: T  
Word Count: Roughly 3,000  
Genre: Angst, Friendship, Romance, Hurt/Comfort**

**I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender.**

* * *

Aang stood in the snow, trying not to fall apart.

He stared at the betrothal necklace cradled in his shaking hands. Unlike the traditional chokers, it was long and fell almost to the stomach when worn—an intentional move on his part so she could wear it together with her mother's necklace. However, though the length was very much similar to that of the Air Nomad prayer beads he usually had around his neck, the pale blue Mother-of-Pearl pendant hanging on it was unmistakably Water Tribe.

His gaze drifted to the carefully etched pattern on the necklace's only ornament—a perfect combination of the air and water symbols. He smiled wryly as he remembered all the sleepless nights he had spent working on it, motivated by the simple thought of her beaming face and shining cerulean eyes.

He sighed. Due to his Avatar duties, it had been almost a month since he had last seen Katara, who had stayed in the South Pole to help Pakku train the children of some Northern waterbenders who had relocated to help rebuild their sister tribe. Though she tried to accompany him around the world as much as possible, she had her own responsibilities, and Aang would never allow her to turn them down for his sake.

He nervously glanced over at the newly established healing hut—Katara's lesson would end any minute, and that was when he needed to act. All he had to do was to take her to the top of the nearby cliff, go down on one knee, pour out his heart, and ask her to marry him. Simple, right?

He cringed. Far from it.

What if he tripped or lost the necklace or forgot what to say or said something wrong or—

_What if she said no?_

Aang felt his insides freeze at the very thought, and he had to take a deep breath in order to calm himself. Surely Katara would understand if he messed up. He just needed to trust in love—it had worked before, and he didn't see why it wouldn't work again.

He smiled, relaxing a bit. Engagement and marriage were mere formalities—they were already both aware of their unquestionable devotion to each other. Still, making things official would be a great step forward for them, and if it meant that Katara was going to be by his side for the rest of his life, he didn't see how that would end up with him anything less than happy.

But would it be the same for her?

His heart plummeted at the question, doubt filling him once. He ran his thumb over the carvings on the pendant, remembering—for the nth time that day—his dream the night before.

_ "__So you wish to marry the Water Tribe girl?" Avatar Kyoshi asked him, skepticism evident in her voice._

_"__Her name's Katara," he shot back. "And of course I want to marry her. I may be nervous about proposing tomorrow, but I've never been surer of anything in my life!" he exclaimed, waving his arms around to emphasize the point._

_Kyoshi sighed, the expression on her face similar to that of a teacher trying to explain something to a stubborn student. "Aang, you've already turned down mastery of the Avatar State because of her. As the Avatar—"_

_"__Iroh said I was wise to choose love and happiness over power," he countered._

_"__And he is right in saying so." Roku said, appearing on Kyoshi's left. "It's nice to see you again, Aang. Kyoshi," he said nodding to each of them._

_"__Roku," Kyoshi grumbled. "I suppose you're going to talk him into continuing his proposal."_

_"__I don't see why not," Roku said, unfazed. "I lived out a happy life with Ta Min."_

_"__See? I want to do the same with Katara," he said earnestly._

_The Earth Kingdom native crossed her arms. "Aang, there is a reason I chose not to marry. If being the Avatar is difficult, the same is true for their partner."_

_Aang frowned. "Roku?" he asked, turning to the previous Avatar._

_Unfortunately, the old man's eyes were rueful as he acknowledged the truth. "I'm afraid I cannot deny that, Aang. Ta Min had to put up with my feud with Sozin, as well as endure long periods of my absence due to my duties. Loving the Avatar is not an easy thing." He bit his lip as he remembered the sad but understanding looks on Katara's face whenever they had to cancel their plans because of calls from the Earth King, as well as the hushed, regretful sighs she thought he couldn't hear._

_"__I can vouch for the same." Avatar Kuruk said, materializing in front of him. "Heed my wisdom, young Aang—romantically linking yourself to the Avatar is dangerous. My beloved was taken by Koh for my mistakes." He choked on the last part, and Aang flinched at the pained expression on his past life's face._

_"__Think about it," Kyoshi urged. Her eyes, already made intimidating by the makeup, were sparking with insistency. "Has anyone ever used Katara to threaten you?"_

_He hung his head as memory after memory hit him hard—Bumi encasing Katara in rock candy, General Fong using her to get him into the Avatar State, Azula capturing her and throwing her into the crystal catacombs . . ._

_"__I can't put Katara in danger," he murmured, shuddering at the very thought of her being harmed. "But what do I do now? Are you saying I should just break up with her?" he asked, horror-struck._

_The three spirits exchanged looks. "The choice is up to you, Aang. We offer you nothing but our wisdom and warnings," Kuruk said._

_He glared at the three spirits who were supposed to be the answer to his problems, not the source. "But I'm so confused now!" He clenched his fists. "I don't know what to do anymore."_

_Avatar Roku, however, simply smiled. "You said the same thing about Ozai, and you dealt with him impressively. I'm sure you'll figure it out," With that, he and the two other Avatars faded away, leaving Aang to make the impossible decision by himself._

Aang snorted, half-annoyed and half-sarcastic as Roku's words rang in his mind. Contrary to what he had been told, the present Avatar was currently a bundle of nerves and uncertainty—no thanks to his past lives. Trying to propose to his girlfriend of six years had already turned him into a wreck, and now he had been given every possible reason not to push through with it. He loved Katara and he wanted to be with her, but how could he do that knowing what he would be putting her through?

"Well, what are you waiting for?" a voice broke through his thoughts. He whipped around to see Sokka standing a few feet away, arms crossed and an eyebrow raised.

His mouth felt dry. "I—" He quickly hid the necklace behind his back. "Um—"

"Really, Aang, you're just going to be sealing the deal." The warrior rolled his eyes. "For all I know, you two have already been living like a married couple."

Aang blushed fiercely at the accusing tone in his voice. "Of course not! I'm a _monk_, Sokka."

Sokka shrugged, but Aang saw him breathe a tiny sigh of relief. "Good to hear that. Now back to my first question—what's the holdup? Are you getting cold feet?"

It took a moment for him to respond. "I—Well, sort of. I mean, not really—"

"How _dare _you!" He was right in front of the poor airbender in an instant, jabbing a finger at his chest threateningly. "I trusted you and all this time, you've just been leading my sister—"

"No, no!" he said quickly, backing away. "I _do _want to marry her. It's just . . . I had a dream," he admitted.

The young man leaned back, surprise flashing across his expression. "A dream," he repeated slowly, letting it sink in. "You're having second thoughts about marrying Katara because of some stupid nightmare?"

Aang pursed his lips. "It was more of a vision. Roku, Kyoshi, and Kuruk talked to me last night, and they warned me about . . . marriage."

Sokka's brows furrowed for a second. "Hold on, are you saying Avatars can't marry?" he said, gasping.

"What? No!" Aang shook his head furiously. "We _can_, but like what my past lives told me, it's hard." He kept his gaze on the ground, unable to look his girlfriend's brother in the eye. "I don't think I can give Katara the life she deserves," he admitted.

"What do you mean?" Sokka asked, both puzzlement and impatience leaking into his tone.

Aang sighed. "I spent the past weeks helping with the plans for Republic City and trying to subdue uprisings all around the world." It was hard to miss the exhaustion in his voice, and Sokka suddenly became aware of the dark bags under his friend's eyes, the slight hunch in his posture. "My Avatar duties have been keeping me away from Katara lately, and that isn't going to change if we get married. She would have to be on her own a lot, and I don't want that.

"But that's not the only reason. I'll endanger her, Sokka." The expression on his face was frustrated, torn. "Koh the Face Stealer took away Avatar Kuruk's wife because of his mistakes. What if I do something wrong and Katara has to pay for it?"

His words hung in the air, met only by silence as Sokka simply stood there, stroking the slight stubble on his chin thoughtfully. Each second that passed was agonizing as he waited for what his possibly future brother-in-law had to say about his situation.

Finally, he spoke. "I have to say, thosepast lives of yours drivesome good points," Sokka conceded, and Aang's felt like he had been punched in the gut. Maybe it had been too much to expect reassurance. "But I have some things to say, too."

The Avatar looked up, hoping against hope that Sokka would be able to disprove countless of past lives' worth of wisdom.

"See this?" The young warrior pulled up the sleeve of his shirt, revealing a purplish mark on his arm. "Katara waterwhipped me after I _joked _about the possibility of you seeing another girl while you were away."

Aang glared at him, insulted. "I would _never_—"

Sokka held up his hands. "I told you, it was a joke. And before you ask me why I still have a bruise, she stalked off before I could ask her to heal it."

The Avatar was quiet as he took that in.

"The thing is, Aang, Katara's crazy about you. _Really _crazy. So your past lives told you that maybe marrying the Avatar isn't a good idea. And maybe they're right." Aang flinched at the nonchalance in his voice. This wasn't helping at all. "But if that's what my sister wants, then there's nothing we can do about that."

"Actually, I've been thinking about not continuing the proposal at all." He held up the betrothal necklace once more, looking sadly at what used to symbolize his love for her—it seemed nothing more than a binding chain now.

To his surprise, Sokka gave an exasperated sigh. "Really, Aang, I thought you would have known her by now. If you go and break her heart because you think it's for her own good, I won't be able to do much if you end up in another iceberg."

Aang couldn't help but crack a smile at the truth in Sokka's words; his girlfriend was quite a force when she was upset. "So what do you think I should do?"

"Go ahead and propose, then see what she says. Tell her exactly what she's walking into, though I don't think that's going to change her decision." He rolled his eyes.

Aang considered it for a moment. "You know, Sokka, you give better advice than a bunch of past Avatars," he finally said, smiling up at his friend.

"What can I say? It's a gift," he said smugly, crossing his arms. He opened his mouth to say more, but the chattering of little voices filled the air, cutting him off.

They turned to see five children walking out of the healing hut, waving goodbye to their teacher.

"Thank you for the lesson, Sifu Katara!" they chirped.

Katara flashed her students an affectionate smile—it was the same one she gave to any child she saw. "See you all tomorrow!" she said cheerfully before going back inside the hut.

Aang was still lost in thoughts about how good a mother she would be someday when Sokka grabbed him roughly by the shoulders. "Now's your chance!"

He blinked, trying to shake himself back to reality. "R—Right!" He double-checked to make sure the necklace was still in his hands, then smoothened his robes and took a deep breath. He looked determinedly at the hut—the woman he loved was in there, and he was going to propose to her even if it killed him.

"Wait." He looked back at the warrior, who seemed to be debating on something.

"Yeah?"

Sokka sighed. "I just wanted you to know that as weird as it is having my best friend propose to my little sister—" Aang held his breath. "—I wouldn't have it any other way. If there's someone I can trust to take care of Katara, it's you."

Aang smiled gratefully, touched and humbled by his words. "Thanks. I really appreciate that, Sokka."

"Yeah, well, get out there before I change my mind about accepting you as a brother-in-law." He turned, starting to walk away. "I'll be hiding at home—I don't want to be anywhere near the oogie fest you two are probably going to have."

The young Avatar turned bright red, turning around as well. He walked briskly to the healing hut, shaking his head at how Sokka could go from supportive to humiliating in the flick of a lemur's tail.

Still, he allowed himself a small smile. Sure, Sokka was annoying at times, but honestly, he wouldn't have had it any other way either.

. . .

"Yes! Yes, of _course_!" she yelled, throwing her arms around him and tackling him with a kiss. They landed in a giggling heap in the snow, paying no attention to the cold as they celebrated the sweet promise that had just been made.

Though he was momentarily distracted by their rapture, it wasn't long before Aang's initial fears came back to him. "Are you sure, Katara?" he said, pulling them into a sitting position. She opened her mouth to speak, but he held a finger to her lips. "It's not only me you're marrying—you'll be marrying the Avatar as well. I won't get to spend as much time with you as I would want, and you might find that difficult especially if we have a family."

"Aang—"

"You won't be safe either," he continued, looking seriously into her ocean eyes. "Avatar Kuruk's wife was taken away by Koh—"

"Aang." She shook her head, her snow-dotted ebony hair, swaying with the movement. "You don't get it, do you?"

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What? What don't I get?"

"Do you think I don't already know that?" she said gently. "Life with you has _never _been easy, and it never will be. But you're worth it."

Aang sighed ruefully. "I can't put you through all that just for me . . ."

"Who says I'm doing it for you?" she said, grinning mischievously. "I love you, Aang. I'll take any kind of life if it means I get to be with you."

He could feel a smile starting to spread on his face. "Really?"

"Really," she assured him. "Now, are you going to give this to me or not?" she said, reaching over to hold up his hand, which was still gripping the betrothal necklace tightly.

The Avatar laughed. "Right."

Katara's hands moved to her neck to untie her most precious possession, but Aang stopped her. "I made it long so that you won't have to take your mother's necklace off," he said, reading the question in her eyes. He easily slipped the betrothal necklace over her head. "I hope you don't mind that it's untraditional."

Katara had to blink back tears at his thoughtfulness. "Of course not. We're hardly a traditional couple, after all." She laughed breathily before cradling the pendant. It was a striking contrast to her tanned hands.

"You like it?" he inquired shyly.

She nodded. "It's perfect," she said softly, carefully tracing the etched markings of their elements. "When did you find the time to make this?"

"In between planning for Republic City and keeping rebels under control," he admitted, and the hint of sadness that touched her eyes didn't escape him. "It's not too late, Katara. Are you sure—"

She stopped his lips with a kiss. "I'm sure."

. . .

"He pushed through with it," Avatar Kyoshi said disbelievingly, watching the young couple.

Roku smiled. "I'm not surprised. Love, when it is real, always finds a way." He paused thoughtfully. "Theirs is one of the strongest bonds I've ever seen, though."

Kyoshi shrugged. "I guess," she conceded. "At least he's chosen well. His Katara is as stubborn as an earthbender," she said with grudging admiration.

"You have to be, to choose a life with the Avatar," Kuruk said, smiling sadly. "She reminds me so much of Umi."

"She and Ta Min share the same glow as well," Roku remarked with a sigh. "I'm glad he's found his soulmate. Even the Avatar deserves to be happy." Kuruk nodded at his words.

It took a while before Kyoshi responded. "I guess you're right."

* * *

**So the cliff where Aang proposed is the same cliff where he gave Korra back her bending :)**

**This was (kinda) rushed, so I apologize for any bad writing, etc.**


	7. Safe

**A/N: Day 7! Late, but I still can't believe I was able to do all seven prompts!**

**Rating: **K+  
**Word Count: **Roughly 1,200 (How I managed to get it from 500+ to this is beyond me)  
**Genre: **Hurt/Comfort, Angst

**I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender**

* * *

Aang gritted his teeth, forcing himself to swallow back a scream.

A soft glow filled the room, and he dug his nails into the mat, squeezing his eyes shut. During healing sessions, there was always a moment of excruciating pain before the relief came, but to the young Avatar, the moment seemed to stretch out into forever.

Thankfully, the initial torture did indeed turn out to be temporary, and Aang finally relaxed, almost falling forward in relief. He sighed contentedly as the water moved across the full extent of his burns, soothing them until he felt nothing more than a tolerable stinging sensation.

After a few minutes of this, Aang heard a soft swishing sound as Katara bent the water she used back into two nearby pots. He watched as she made her way across the room to retrieve some supplies, her back to him.

He swallowed guiltily. They'd both faced near-death situations countless times, but he had never seen her like this before. The rigidness in her posture, her clenched fists, the roughness in her usually graceful movements—she was obviously more upset than usual, and it didn't take a genius to guess that he was the reason behind it.

"Are you mad at me?" he asked. It was hardly more than a whisper, but he knew that it was loud enough for her to hear.

Katara stiffened, hesitating briefly before replying. "That was probably the stupidest thing you've ever done," she said curtly, avoiding both his question and his gaze as she turned on her heel and walked briskly back to her spot behind him, arms full of bandages and ointments. "At least you had the sense to make sure it was your back that took the damage," she muttered, the hard edge still present in her tone.

Aang averted his gaze as the afternoon's events rapidly played out in his mind once more: the rebels, the flicker of fear in her eyes, his instinct to protect her, the flash of fire, the split-second searing pain that came right before the darkness. In hindsight, there were so many other ways he could have saved her, but as he had proven earlier, rationality tended to take a backseat in times of panic. What he did was stupid, yes—crazy, even. But if the outcome was her being unscathed . . .

He sighed. "I'm sorry for worrying you. But I can't say I regret doing it." His words were met with a pregnant silence as Katara continued to focus on nothing else but tending to his injuries.

Aang bit his lip; bottling up her emotions and distracting herself with work were his girlfriend's defense mechanisms against things that would otherwise break her. She was only postponing the inevitable, of course, but the Avatar didn't dare push her. Trusting she would let it all out in her own time, he sat there quietly, eyes trained on the wooden floorboards. After all, they were both insistently hiding the pain they knew the other was already aware of.

They stayed like that for a while: Katara methodically bandaging his burns and Aang resisting the instinct to wince every time raw skin came in contact with the ointment. As good a patient he was, however, she was a far better healer—her movements were deft but gentle, never pausing. So when she came to an abrupt stop a few seconds later, Aang's heart sank. She had reached her limit; something had finally broken her.

True enough, the young man felt the touch of her careful fingers lingering on the very edge of the spot where Azula's lightning had passed through him. Knowing what she was thinking, he turned, looking over his shoulder. Her ocean eyes were filled with anguished tears that she was trying in vain to blink back.

"Don't cry, Katara." He slowly adjusted his position so he could face her fully, clenching his teeth as agonizing pain shot through him at every movement.

"No, don't move," she told him, but the Avatar obstinately ignored her, not stopping until she was directly in front of him. There were beads of sweat on his forehead from the effort, and the healer shakily flicked her hand to bend them off.

"You're so stubborn," she chided him half-heartedly, shaking her head.

The corner of his mouth pulled up in a half-smile. "I know."

"I didn't say that was a good thing." Her tone was clipped, and the expression on her face hardened once more.

He sighed, his gray eyes pleading. "Katara—"

"I almost lost you, Aang. _Again,_" she said, her voice breaking. The tears she had been holding back leaked out as she closed her eyes, and Aang was sure she was reliving the nightmare that had occurred all those years ago in Ba Sing Se.

"Hey," he said gently, trying to comfort her with his voice alone. "I'm still here," He did his best to muster up a reassuring smile.

She drew in a shuddering breath. "By sheer luck."

"No, by you," he corrected. "You saved me so many times, Katara. Could you really blame me for wanting to return the favor?"

"Well, it's an awful way of returning it," she snapped, slamming a palm down onto the mat and making him flinch. Regret instantly filled her blue eyes when she realized what she had done. "I'm so sorry, Aang, I just—I don't know what I would do—"

"Shh, Katara." He moved his good arm to place a hand on top of the one next to him.

Her shoulders slumped in exhaustion. "You saved me today, Aang. And you almost died doing it." Her mask of anger had finally disappeared, exposing the pain and vulnerability she had been trying to keep to herself.

Aang gently stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. As much as he would have liked to deny what she said, lying to her would be useless. "True," he admitted. "But you want to know why I did it anyway?"

She looked up at him, and he easily recognized the sapphire eyes that had greeted him when he awoke from the iceberg, the same relieved ones he saw after she brought him back from the dead. They cautiously searched him for the truth, even more striking in comparison to the muddy trails sweat and tears had left on her dirt-coated face. The Avatar smiled at her softly—she was hardly the picture of perfection at the moment, yet there was an undeniable beauty about her that no amount of filth could ever cover up.

"You mean the world to me, Katara," he said, holding her gaze. "Just the thought of you . . . _dying_ . . ." He choked on the last word, shaking his head. "It's unbearable. I'd throw myself in front of a rebel to save you anytime."

"I'd do the same for you," she whispered, her face only inches from his.

His mouth twitched. "I know. Because that's what you and I do, Katara. We save each other."

Katara cracked a small smile at his words, leaning in to gently brush her lips over his. "We do."

* * *

**A/N: If you're wondering, yes, it was a Mockingjay reference.**

**'Til next year! :)**


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